Vast Sea, Sleeping Mother
And you, vast sea, sleeping mother Who alone are peace and freedom to the river and the stream, Only another winding will this stream...
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smshige3
Mar 12, 20211 min read
Still Standing Trees 立ち尽くす木
耐えるしかないのか 樹木よ 精神が血を流している 涙を流している 私たちは それでも 立ち尽くす木なのだ 和合亮一 we can only bear witness tree spirits bleeding tears falling, we are still...
smshige3
Mar 11, 20212 min read
Glad to feel the sweet, fresh breeze
Tsunami survivor Isao Sato, a resident of Iwate Prefecture that was devastated by the March 11, 2011 disaster, wrote of his experience:...
smshige3
Mar 9, 20211 min read
Always Together
I dreamt that I died lost at sea washed up on shore and there they were waiting for me to return home to them wagging their tails licking...
smshige3
Mar 4, 20215 min read
Finding Meaning in Loss, Grief, and Saying Goodbye
"I was supposed to die many times, but I haven't.” A group of Stanford students were feeling every word Isa said, sensing how she who has...
smshige3
Feb 25, 20214 min read
A Japanese Grandmother’s Heartful Final Message at 111
“She waited for you,” the priest told me. I believe she did. It had been a long trip to get there and Grandmother had been on a long...
smshige3
Feb 19, 20214 min read
A Japanese American Way of Vulnerability and Courage
What do we do when life gives us a situation that we feel is beyond our control? We are repeatedly forced to deal with such conditions....
smshige3
Feb 5, 20212 min read
A Teacher's Influence
February 4 is the birthday of Rosa Parks, a woman who started a movement for freedom and justice by one simple act of bravery. On a...
smshige3
Feb 1, 20211 min read
A Moment of Heartfulness
"Hey mister . . . you're the guy who taught us Japanese!" It was years later and I could hardly recognize the kid who had come alive that...
smshige3
Jan 30, 20212 min read
What is Life Asking of Me?
Following my workshop a student came up to me and asked, “My dog just died two weeks ago, and I am so sad. How I can get over it?” At...
smshige3
Jan 24, 20212 min read
Celebrating Mom's 97th Birthday
Mom's life began in a mountain village near the city of Matsuyama, the tenth and last child soon to be given to her older sister to be...
smshige3
Jan 18, 20212 min read
What wondrous gift is this!
Reflecting on a child’s birthday brings a sense of renewed wonder and awe. The emergence of a life, a living creature, from the mother’s...
smshige3
Jan 13, 20211 min read
Glad to be Born!
Did you ever why you’re here –what it’s all about? What better day than one’s birthday to ask. In a favorite film scene (It’s Hard to be...
smshige3
Jan 12, 20211 min read
111 (Wan, wan, wan)
It was another of those dog days, January 11-- 1/11. Because a dog's bark in Japanese sounds like Wan, I always say it's their day. It's...
smshige3
Dec 23, 20201 min read
Taking a Resiliency Pause
"How do you find calm when there is so much stress and struggle with no clear end in sight? I want to share what has been helpful to me...
smshige3
Dec 22, 20202 min read
Japan as Number 1!
I was a youth striving to learn everything I could about Japan when the book came out. Driven by the black power movement, I was “coming...
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